Bible Study # 16
The Divinity of Jesus Christ
Introduction:
The revelation of the divinity of Jesus Christ is very evident throughout the Holy Scriptures. The Bible is very emphatic, thorough, and consistent in teaching this transcendental truth. However, from the very origin of Christianity until today there have been those who have generated and taught doctrines that deny the divine equality of the Son with the Father. This denial is based on human reasoning, but not on biblical evidence. Possibly these heresies have arisen from man’s determination to make the unfathomable mystery of the triune God logical and easy for the human intellect to reason out. It is an attempt to make explainable what is inexplicable and to spare the limited and poor reason of man from conflict.
We believe what the Divine Word teaches and what was ratified at the Council of Nicaea (A.D. 325): that “Jesus Christ is the Son of God, is true God, begotten – not created – of the Father, EQUAL IN ESSENCE (Greek “homousion”) TO THE FATHER…” (quoted from: “Un Dios en Tres Personas,” p. 128, Francisco Lacuela, publisher CLIE 1974). Let us enter into our study.
1. What was Jesus’ answer to Philip when he said to Him: “Lord, show us the Father and it is enough for us”?
John 14: 7-11
“If you had known me, you would have known my Father also; and from now on you know him, and have seen him. 8 Philip said to him: Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us. 9 Jesus said to him: Have I been so long with you, and you have not known me, Philip? He who has seen me has seen the Father; how then do you say: Show us the Father? 10 Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does the works. 11 Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me; otherwise, believe me for the sake of the works themselves”
2. How closely tied are the nature of the Father and of the Son?
John 14: 10, 11, 20; 10: 30, 38; 17: 21, 23 2 Cor. 5: 19
“Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does the works. 11 Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me; otherwise, believe me for the sake of the works themselves”
“In that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you”
“I and the Father are one. 31 Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him. 32 Jesus answered them: Many good works I have shown you from my Father; for which of those works do you stone me? 33 The Jews answered him, saying: For a good work we do not stone you, but for blasphemy; because you, being a man, make yourself God. 34 Jesus answered them: Is it not written in your law: I said, you are gods? 35 If he called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture cannot be broken), 36 do you say of him whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world: You blaspheme, because I said: I am the Son of God? 37 If I do not do the works of my Father, do not believe me. 38 But if I do them, though you do not believe me, believe the works, that you may know and believe that the Father is in me, and I in the Father”
“that they all may be one; as you, O Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be one in us; that the world may believe that you sent me. 22 The glory which you gave me I have given them, that they may be one, just as we are one. 23 I in them, and you in me, that they may be perfected in unity, that the world may know that you sent me, and have loved them as you have loved me”
“that God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself, not counting men’s sins against them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation”
3. Who was Jesus Christ from eternity, and what relationship has He had with the blessed Father?
John 1:1-3
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him nothing of what has been made was made”
4. Those who deny the divine equality of the Son teach that Jesus Christ is divine, but inferior to the Father; they call Him a lesser god. What does Holy Scripture say about the divinity of Christ?
1 John 5:20; Titus 2:13; Rom. 9:5; Rev. 1: 4-7 (read vs. 9-18).
“But we know that the Son of God has come, and has given us understanding to know him who is true; and we are in the true one, in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life”
“looking for the blessed hope and the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ”
“of whom are the patriarchs, and from whom, according to the flesh, Christ came, who is God over all, blessed forever. Amen”
“John, to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace and peace to you, from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne; 5 and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loved us, and washed us from our sins with his blood, 6 and made us kings and priests to God, his Father; to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. 7 Behold, he comes with clouds, and every eye will see him, and those who pierced him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of him. Even so, Amen”
5. What is the degree of divinity that the Lord Jesus Christ possesses?
Col. 2:9
“For in him dwells bodily all the fullness of the Godhead”
6. The opponents of the trinitarian faith allege that Jesus Christ is not equal in essence (from the Greek “homousion”) to the Father, but “homoisuios” (of an essence similar to that of the Father). What does the Word of God teach in this regard?
Col 1:15; Heb. 1: 1-3
“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation”
“God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, 2 has in these last days spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom also he made the universe; 3 who, being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his substance, and upholding all things by the word of his power, having made purification of our sins by himself, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high”
7. Does the Father acknowledge the divinity of the Son?
Heb. 1: 5-8; Ps. 110:1
“For to which of the angels did God ever say: You are my Son, today I have begotten you? And again: I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son? 6 And again, when he brings the Firstborn into the world, he says: Let all the angels of God worship him. 7 Of the angels he says: Who makes his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire. 8 But of the Son he says: Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; a scepter of equity is the scepter of your kingdom”
“The LORD said to my Lord: Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet”
8. What other divine titles does Isaiah give to the Messiah who was to come?
Isa. 9: 6,7
“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon his shoulder; and his name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. 7 Of the greatness of his dominion and of peace there will be no limit, upon the throne of David and over his kingdom, to order it and establish it with judgment and with justice from now and forever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this”
9. Those who refute the doctrine of the trinity argue that Jesus was created by the Father; in what way does the Bible teach the eternal coexistence of the Son?
Isa. 9:6 Mic. 5:2; Prov. 8:22-31
“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon his shoulder; and his name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace”
“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, little to be among the families of Judah, out of you shall come forth to me the one who will be Lord in Israel; and his goings forth are from the beginning, from the days of eternity”
“The LORD possessed me in the beginning, even of old, before his works. 23 From everlasting I held the principality, from the beginning, before the earth. 24 Before the depths I was begotten; before the fountains of the many waters existed. 25 Before the mountains were formed, before the hills, I had already been begotten; 26 he had not yet made the earth, nor the fields, nor the beginning of the dust of the world. 27 When he formed the heavens, I was there; when he drew the circle upon the face of the deep; 28 when he established the heavens above, when he strengthened the fountains of the deep; 29 when he gave the sea its statute, that the waters should not transgress his command; when he established the foundations of the earth, 30 I was with him, ordering all things, and I was his delight day by day, taking solace before him at all times. 31 I rejoice in the habitable part of his earth; and my delights are with the sons of men”
10. The enemies of this truth use the text of Rev. 3:14 that says that Christ is “the beginning of the creation of God.” They also cite as an argument Col. 1:15 that says that Jesus is “the firstborn of all creation, but what is the true explanation of these passages?
A. When the Bible calls the Lord Jesus the “beginning and the firstborn of the creation of God,” it does not mean to teach that He was the first one who was created, but that He is the origin of creation, that is, that He was the one who gave beginning to all the things that were created, and this is easy to prove because it is explained in the very context of Col. 1: 16-19. Verse 15 says: “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation “; and verse 16 explains: “For in Him all things were created, those that are in heaven and those that are on earth…”
Why is He the firstborn of all creation? The Word answers right away: “because in Him all things were created…”(vs. 16). In John 1:3 it says: “Without Him nothing of what has been made was made”.
B. The adversaries of the doctrine of the trinity allude to the meaning of the word firstborn. The Greek word that is translated firstborn is ‘PROTOTOKOS,’ and it means first born (from ‘protos,’ first, and ‘tikto,’ to beget)
The New Testament uses that word seven times to refer to Christ:
(1) Matt. 1: 25 – “her firstborn son “.
(2) Luke 2: 7 – “her firstborn son”.
(3) Rom. 8:29 – “firstborn among many brethren
(4) Col. 1:15 – “firstborn of all creation “
(5) Col. 1:18 – “firstborn from among the dead”.
(6) Heb. 1:16 – “brings the firstborn into the world”.
(7) Rev. 1:15 – “the firstborn of the dead”.
In the Bible the word firstborn is used not only to refer to the first son who was begotten, but anything that is principal or first in its kind is also called firstborn (Job 18:13; Isa. 14:30). There were also other ways of becoming firstborn apart from birth:
(1) By decree – Gen. 4:50-52; Gen. 48:13-18 ; Jer. 31:9; 1 Chron. 5: 1-3
(2) By dignity – 1 Sam. 16:10-12 Ps. 89:20-27.
(3) By nation – Ex. 4:22; Gen. 25-25-34.
In the same passage of Colossians it explains the reason why Christ is called firstborn. Verse 18 says: “and He is the head of the body which is the church, and He is the beginning, the firstborn from among the dead, THAT IN ALL THINGS HE MAY HAVE THE PREEMINENCE”. Verse 19 adds: “For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell”. Christ is the beginning of creation because He is the one who originated creation. He is the firstborn of the dead, not because He was the first who died or rose, but because with His resurrection He comes to secure the resurrection of all who are saved (1Cor. 15:20-23). The Lord is the “firstborn among many brethren” (Rom. 8:29) because through His resurrection He becomes the first son of the new creation (Rom. 1:4). He is the Adam of the new creation, and with Him begins the family of those born of God.
We conclude that the word firstborn is applied to Christ because He is the foremost in all things and not because He is the first who was created by God.
11. In what other way does the Bible tell us that Jesus is not an inferior God who became the first one created by the Father?
Isa. 43:10; 44:6
“You are my witnesses, says the LORD, and my servant whom I have chosen, that you may know and believe me, and understand that I am he; before me no god was formed, nor shall there be after me”
“Thus says the LORD, the King of Israel, and his Redeemer, the LORD of hosts: I am the first, and I am the last, and besides me there is no God”
12. What are some of the heresies that have arisen in the history of Christianity against the doctrine of the trinity?
A. Docetism – They taught that Christ is a God with the appearance of a human body..
B. Ebionism – They believed in the humanity of Christ, but rejected His divinity.
C. Gnosticism – They affirmed that Christ was neither fully God nor fully man.
D. Adoptionism – Jesus was a man adopted by God at the moment of baptism. Made Messiah by baptism and glorified in the resurrection, He is raised to the divine level.
E. Modalism – They believed that both the Son and the Holy Spirit are nothing more than “modes” of the Father manifesting Himself to man. They deny the distinction of persons in the Godhead.
F. Subordinationism – They assert that only the Father is true God, whereas the Son and the Holy Spirit are two persons who participate in the divinity, but are created beings, subordinate and inferior to the Father.
G. Arianism – It is a form of subordinationism. Its name originated from its first expositor or creator of the doctrine, Arius, bishop of Alexandria. Between the years 319-320 A.D. his teachings gave rise to a titanic theological controversy that led to divisions and fierce debates in the great circles of the church. Arius believed that the Son was created by the Father before time was. Christ is the origin of creation, consequently He is not co-eternal. The Council of Nicaea (325
A.D.) condemned Arius and his doctrine.
13. What other divine attributes does Jesus possess?
A. Creator- Jn. 1:3; Col. 1: 15-18
B. Omniscient – Jn. 2:23-25
C. Omnipotent – Matt. 28-28
D. Omnipresent – Matt. 18-20
E. Holy – Acts 4:27
F. Truth – Jn. 14:6
G. All-wise – Col. 2:3
H. Sustainer – Heb. 1:3
14. God commanded that no other god be worshiped but only the LORD (Ex. 20:3-5; 34:14); why did He Himself command that the Son be worshiped?
Phil. 2:10; Heb. 1:6; Ps. 2:12
“that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth”
“And again, when he brings the Firstborn into the world, he says: Let all the angels of God worship him”
“Honor the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish in the way; for his wrath is quickly kindled. Blessed are all who trust in him”
